How can you balance technical and non-technical responsibilities as an instrumentation professional?

1 Know your role

The first step to balancing your technical and non-technical responsibilities is to understand your role and expectations. What are the main objectives, deliverables, and standards of your projects? What are the skills, knowledge, and tools required for your tasks? What are the roles and expectations of your team members, clients, and stakeholders? By clarifying these aspects, you can prioritize your work, allocate your time and effort, and avoid confusion and conflicts.

2 Develop your skills

The second step to balancing your technical and non-technical responsibilities is to develop your skills and competencies. You need to keep up with the latest trends, technologies, and best practices in instrumentation and control engineering, but you also need to improve your soft skills, such as communication, teamwork, problem-solving, and leadership. You can do this by taking courses, attending webinars, reading books and articles, joining professional associations, and seeking feedback and mentoring.

3 Use your tools

The third step to balancing your technical and non-technical responsibilities is to use your tools and resources effectively. You need to leverage the software, hardware, and equipment that can help you perform your technical tasks more efficiently and accurately, but you also need to utilize the platforms, systems, and methods that can help you manage your non-technical tasks more smoothly and transparently. You can do this by exploring the features, functions, and benefits of your tools, adopting the standards, protocols, and procedures of your organization, and integrating the data, information, and documentation of your projects.

4 Communicate clearly

The fourth step to balancing your technical and non-technical responsibilities is to communicate clearly and consistently. You need to convey your technical ideas, issues, and solutions to your colleagues, clients, and stakeholders, but you also need to listen to their needs, expectations, and feedback. You can do this by using appropriate language, terminology, and formats for your audience, providing relevant details, examples, and evidence for your messages, and asking questions, clarifying doubts, and confirming understanding for your interactions.

5 Collaborate effectively

The fifth step to balancing your technical and non-technical responsibilities is to collaborate effectively and constructively. You need to work with your team members, clients, and stakeholders to achieve your project goals, but you also need to respect their opinions, perspectives, and contributions. You can do this by establishing clear roles, responsibilities, and expectations for your collaboration, sharing your knowledge, skills, and resources with your partners, and resolving any conflicts, challenges, and issues that may arise during your collaboration.

6 Learn from experience

The sixth step to balancing your technical and non-technical responsibilities is to learn from your experience and improve your performance. You need to evaluate the results, outcomes, and impacts of your projects, but you also need to reflect on the processes, methods, and strategies that you used. You can do this by collecting and analyzing feedback, data, and evidence from your projects, identifying the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of your work, and applying the lessons, insights, and recommendations for your future projects.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?